HEV and HAV seroprevalence in men that have sex with men (MSM): An update from Milan, Italy

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a feco‐orally transmitted pathogen and one of the most common cause of acute hepatitis worldwide. Recent studies in developed countries suggested that a direct human‐to‐human contact such as for sexually transmitted diseases may play a significant role in the HEV spread. The aim of this study was to investigate the seroprevalence of HEV and HAV in a group of MSM, including subjects HIV, and Treponema infected, in Milan, Italy. The overall anti HEV IgG seroprevalence in MSM was 10.2% (65/636), instead in the control group the detection rate was 5.2% (15/288) ( P  < 0.05); the anti HAV seroprevalence was 42.8% in MSM, when in the control group the positivity rate was 29.2% ( P  < 0.05). The rate of coinfection HEV/HAV was 14.6% in MSM and 1% in control group ( P  < 0.05). In the future, sexual history, HIV status, and STI risk might address specific investigations to prevent spread of pathogens such HEV in MSM, before becoming a substantial public health problem like for HAV outbreaks.